'Home game' today for Patriots vs. Jaguars

Sunday

Dec 23, 2012 at 6:00 AMDec 23, 2012 at 1:26 PM

The Jacksonville Jaguars have removed some tarps from the upper decks at EverBank Field due to an increased ticket demand for today's game against the Patriots. But the significant spike in interest is due to who the Jaguars are playing rather than how they're playing.

By Rich Garven TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

The Jacksonville Jaguars have removed some tarps from the upper decks at EverBank Field due to an increased ticket demand for today's game against the Patriots.

But the significant spike in interest is due to who the Jaguars are playing rather than how they're playing.

“Obviously, New England travels well so I'm sure a bunch of their fans will be down here for the holiday,” quarterback Chad Henne said. “For us in Jacksonville, we just want to give our fans a win at home, make them feel good at the holidays.

“They come out each and every game. It's not (always) a sold-out crowd, but we have a lot of people in the stands who still believe in us and we just want to give back to them as much as we can.”

The Jaguars rank 21st in the NFL in attendance. They're tied for last in wins, with two in 14 games.

That includes a 1-6 record at home. Five of those losses have been by double figures (20, 17, 38, 17, 17 points) and their only win came against AFC South rival Tennessee, which is plodding along at 5-9.

The Jags have been outscored at home, 189-78.

Conversely, they've been reasonably competitive on the road. They took Minnesota, Oakland and Houston to overtime before succumbing and they won at Indianapolis, which appears headed to the playoffs.

“I don't think there's any ingredient why it's been like that,” Henne said of the home-road disparity. “Obviously, we need to play better at home, but there's really nothing that … We've just kind of hurt ourselves a lot of times. We're in the games and whether it be penalties or not converting on third downs, we hurt ourselves and give the opponent an opportunity.”

To be fair, the Jaguars have been hammered by injuries.

They have 18 players on injured reserve, including sophomore quarterback Blaine Gabbert, which might not be such a bad thing. Eleven starters have lost a combined 70 games to injury, including running back Maurice Jones-Drew, which is definitely a bad thing.

Jones-Drew, who led the NFL in rushing last season, will miss his ninth straight game today with a foot injury.

The Jaguars are in a race, if you will, with the Kansas City Chiefs for the first overall pick in April's draft. They aren't going to the playoffs for the fifth straight season.

They're beaten up and have been beaten badly. Still, they apparently aren't playing out the string.

“They play hard, I'll tell you that,” quarterback Tom Brady said. “There's nobody on that team that's not playing and giving everything they've got. So they rush hard, they try to be real physical. They do some things well.

“I think that coach (Bill Belichick) talked about focusing on what we need to do and getting a lot better as a team and our execution needs to be better.”

The Patriots will be seeking to regain the consistency that powered them to a seven-game winning streak before it disappeared in the first half against San Francisco last Sunday, contributing to their eventual downfall.

They also still have a chance to secure one of the top two seeds in the AFC, which comes with a first-round bye and a second-round home game.

Houston (12-4) and Denver (11-3) are currently 1 and 2. The Patriots (10-4) own the tiebreaker against each club by virtue of their head-to-head victories.

The Patriots actually may have a better chance of overtaking the Texans than the Broncos.

The Texans finish with a couple of toughies, home against Minnesota and at Indianapolis. It's unlikely they lose both, but it's reasonably possible.

If that happens, and the Patriots win their final two games, the last of which is against Miami at Gillette Stadium, they'll be seeded ahead of the Texans thanks to their tiebreaker advantage.

The Broncos close with Cleveland and Kansas City. They'll be heavy favorites in both home games.

If they don't lose at least one, the Patriots have no chance of passing them.

Rich Garven's prediction:

Patriots 40, Jaguars 14

Contact Rich Garven at rgarven@telegram.com.

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